Mets manager Terry Collins can't explain his team's home woes

Greg Fiume/Getty ImagesMets manager Terry Collins is perplexed by his team's play at home.

WEATHER UPDATE: Tonight's Mets-Marlins game has been postponed. No makeup date has been announced. Though the Mets are off Thursday, the Marlins have a home game vs. the St. Louis Cardinals. Florida returns to New York for a four-game set from Aug. 29 to Sept. 1.

In their third year at Citi Field, the Mets are virtual strangers in their own house. Not only are they uncomfortable on the field, staring at the 415-foot sign in right center field, they're unease in their plush clubhouse.

The Mets are a dismal 22-28 at Citi Field this season, the third-worst home mark in the majors behind Houston and San Diego, and are 0-9 in the first game of homestands, including their current one against the Marlins.

On the road, the Mets are 33-27, the second-best mark in the major after Boston (33-21).

"Our guys are so much more relaxed on the road than they are at home," manager Terry Collins said. "You sense it when you walk through the clubhouse. ... I don't have the answer. I'm trying to research it and figure out what it may be."

"We were talking as a coaching staff today about our game preparation, what we need to change at home, what we're doing on the road that we're not doing at home. Everything as far as we know is the same.

"Obviously, you do a little bit more extra work at home because you get the field earlier. Is it from the time we're done in batting practice to game-time too long? Is it something we should be doing during that period?}"

The us-against-the-world mentality on the road certainly helps, but both outfielder Jason Bay and pitcher Jonathan Niese shot down Collins' theory about the clubhouse not being relaxed.

More likely, there are simply more distractions at home.

"I can see how you could think that but at the same time we have more or less the same guys that we had last year and our home record was great (47-34)," Bay said when asked if players were more uptight in the clubhouse at home. "For whatever reason, it has been flip-flopped. I just think that's the way things are going.

"I remember we had that stretch a couple of months ago where we had six leads after seven innings and we lost all those games and most of them were at home. You turn half of those around and our record doesn't look that bad."

Said Niese: "We all get along with each other. I don't know if you can really pinpoint anything. It's something we have to battle through."

it's been a losing battle to date, with the team's 0-9 mark in the first game of homestands this season especially troubling to Collins.

"I heard that stat yesterday and I was shocked by it,'' said Collins. ``I don't have an answer."

Collins had no update on Ike Davis (ankle/foot), who is running this week in Arizona. The club hopes to know something at the end of the week.

After tonight’s rainout, the Mets slightly reconfigured their pitching rotation. Tonight’s starter, Dillon Gee, will now start Sunday against the Atlanta Braves. He will be preceded Friday by R.A. Dickey and Jon Niese on Saturday. Facing the San Diego Padres on Monday will be Mike Pelfrey, who will be followed by Chris Capuano.

Gee will be in Brooklyn on Thursday night as the Class-A Cyclones honor him on “Dillon Gee Night.” In 2007, Gee made 14 starts for the Cyclones and posted a 2.57 ERA in 62 innings.

Collins said either Bobby Parnell or Pedro Beato would have been the closer tonight with Jason Isringhausen having the night off.

Asked about the hard-throwing Parnell's potential as a closer, Collins said if the organization handles Parnell correctly — Collins would like to see him develop a changeup — he could emerge as one of the best closers in the league.